The College of Saint Rose

Senior Writing Award

The Saint Rose Senior Writing Award

Students of any major who graduated in the preceding December or who are graduating May of each year are eligible for the award.

Submit three copies of a portfolio consisting of the following: Three separate pieces of writing, including at least two different genres, altogether totaling a minimum of ten pages—maximum of twenty-five pages. Each portfolio should contain at least two different genres (for example, 1 formal academic paper and 2 short stories; 2 essays and 1 playscript; 2 sets of poems and a short story; or an essay, a story and a set of poems). Poetry submissions must have a minimum of 2 and maximum of 5 poems as one set.

Submissions must be anonymous. No name should appear on any page of the submissions. Type your name, address, telephone number, and/or email address on an index card, place the card in an envelope, and seal the envelope. This envelope must be placed, with three copies of your submission, in a large manila envelope. The copies must be arranged as three separate packets, each packet containing your three pieces of writing. Each packet should be bound with a clip or placed in a sturdy binder. One packet from each student will be sent to each of the three judges.

Work completed as a course assignment is appropriate, but it must be retyped so that the instructor's comments do not appear on the pages. Any work that has been published should not be submitted.

Judges are professional writers from outside the Saint Rose community. Judges use a numerical tally, awarding up to 25 points to each of the three pieces submitted by each student. Judges will be guided by the following criteria:

*Appropriateness of form and mastery of the conventions of the genre*Maturity of diction, syntax, tone, and style*Quality of the piece compared to publications in the genre

Note: Pieces containing errors in syntax, spelling, punctuation, grammar, typing, or other elements of correct standard English will be disqualified. Proofread carefully!

Deadlines are in February each year. For specific information and other questions, contact Dr. Rone Shavers

Katherine Wilhelmi, 2011 Writing Award Winner

Katherine Wilhelmi, Music Industry major, is the winner of the Writing Award for 2011. Katherine’s entry, which included one fiction piece and two nonfiction pieces, was chosen as the award recipient by a panel of professional writers.Katherine’s interest in writing promises to be lifelong since she says, “I've been writing for fun since I was about eight, so that will continue. As for writing professionally--with the current job market the way it is, I imagine I'll have to do various things, regardless of what major I'm graduating with. Since I have writing skills, I think it's a likely possibility that I will write professionally.”Katherine explains, “The fact that I entered this contest is due entirely to the English department at Saint Rose. In the past two years, two English classes I've taken (ENG 105 and Fiction Writing) have really improved my writing. Two of the pieces that I entered came out of those classes.” At this point, Katherine is “still exploring a lot of different genres, but I'm leaning towards fiction as being my favorite. Naturally, it's the most difficult for me to just sit down and write.” Katherine has already given a public reading of some of her fiction, at the Upstate Artists Guild this January, where she read “The Guarded Return,” the fiction piece she included in her entry for the award.

Senior Writing Award Winner 2010: Marisa Mason

The winner for 2010 is Marissa Mason. Marissa says, “My background is that of an avid reader, and it was only in the last couple of years at Saint Rose that my appreciation for literature evolved into a desire to take up residence in the world of creative writing myself. So far, I've found it challenging and occasionally exhilarating to be on the other side of writing—a place in which I obsess over bottling consciousness, architecting sentences, and of course, punctuation. I am endlessly grateful to the St. Rose English faculty, particularly Rone Shavers and Daniel Nester, for their guidance in my development as a writer.” Marissa was accepted into the New York Writers Institute in summer 2010, so her development as a creative writer is expanding beyond Saint Rose.

Senior Writing Award Winner 2009: Kellie Marsh

The winner for Spring 2009 was Kellie Marsh. Her submission included a series of short creative nonfiction pieces and a literary analysis. Kellie says that "For me, writing is cathartic and empowering, an outlet as well as a source of creation. Frankly, it is the best way for me to express and process my ideas. And it's fun."